ANNA MARIA – Federal and state funds may be available to help Anna Maria homeowners elevate their ground-level homes.
During the Anna Maria City Commission’s Jan. 9 meeting, the city’s contracted FEMA and floodplain consultant, Del Schwalls, gave a 56-minute flood prevention presentation that included information about the soon-to-be-initiated Elevate Florida program that is expected to provide grants and low-interest loans to those who own ground-level homes in designated flood zones.
Schwalls made his presentation at the request of Mayor Mark Short and the commission chamber was filled to standing room only capacity during the presentation.
The Elevate Florida program was announced in early December during the Florida Chamber of Commerce Insurance Summit in Orlando.
Manatee County government recently issued an Instagram message that said, “The Florida Division of Emergency Management has announced the first statewide residential mitigation program – Elevate Florida – to help homeowners implement preventative measures to reduce potential damage caused by natural disasters. More information about how and when to apply is coming soon. To learn more about eligible project types, please visit floridadisaster.org/residentialmitigation.”
Fourteen minutes into his multi-topic presentation, Schwalls addressed the Elevate Florida program. He noted that it is not yet in effect and an exact start date has not been announced.
Schwalls said there are a lot of FEMA and state funding options to help mitigate and reduce flood damage.
“They look at how much money FEMA spent and they give a percentage of that and that money is available for grants,” he said.
The grant programs fund elevation projects, acquisition projects, stormwater projects and other mitigation projects that help reduce flood damage.
He said FEMA funds are available to elevate a ground-level home or relocate a ground-level home outside of a flood zone. He noted the entire city of Anna Maria (and the rest of Anna Maria Island) is designated flood zone.
He also said, “FEMA will provide money for the city to acquire your house and demolish it and leave it as open space. If there’s no house there, it can’t get damaged.”
Funds are also available for business and restaurant owners to make their businesses more flood resistant.
“All these projects can be funded by FEMA,” Schwalls said.
Regarding elevating a home, he said, “There’s a common misconception that you can’t elevate block homes. You can elevate any house.”
He said elevating a home costs between $20,000 up to $100,000 or more, depending on the location, and FEMA will cover 75% of the elevation costs. The remaining 25% must be provided by the homeowner or other non-federal funding sources and Schwalls said there are many ways to shrink the remaining costs. He said FEMA will cover 90-100% of the cost to elevate a ground-level home that has suffered repeated flood damage and is included on the repetitive loss list.
Schwalls said the city must apply for the FEMA funds on behalf of the homeowner and it may take two or three years to receive the funds. The Elevate Florida program hopes to expedite the funding process by removing the city from the application process and removing some of the red tape that slows the process.
Similar to FEMA, the Elevate Florida program will fund elevation projects, repair and elevation projects and acquisition projects.
Schwalls said older, wooden, ground-level bungalows that suffer hurricane and/or flood damage are often demolished and replaced with an elevated home.
“We want to preserve this character. Some of these houses are generational homes, they’ve been in the family,” he said.
“The current regulations may not work for preserving these, so we’ve been chewing on some other options. The current regulations say if your home gets damaged by more than 50% you’ve got to bring the home into compliance with today’s regulations. If I’m going to improve it more than 50%, federal law and state law says you’ve got to elevate it.”
In response to a question from Commissioner Chris Arendt, Schwalls said FEMA might prioritize primary residences but second homes and vacation rentals statewide are also eligible for FEMA funds.
In response to a question from Commissioner Kathy Morgan-Johnson, Schwalls said FEMA won’t reimburse a homeowner for work done before FEMA approves the work and the approval process might take 6-8 months.
Local contractor Kevin Hutchinson said he’s currently working on a project that entails abandoning the ground-level living space, converting it to garage and storage space and building new living space above it. He asked Schwalls if it would be more cost effective to raise the whole house instead.
Schwalls said he’s not a contractor and can’t provide a cost comparison, but he said FEMA will help fund those types of elevation projects too.
Hutchinson questioned the accuracy of Schwalls’ estimated elevation costs. He said an elevation contractor he spoke with said elevating a wood-framed home costs $100-$160 per square foot and elevating a concrete block home costs $300 per square foot.
Schwalls acknowledged elevation costs vary depending on location and he said the estimates he provided came from companies he’s familiar with in New Orleans and New Jersey.
The city asks those interested in the pursuing FEMA funds to elevate their homes to contact City Planner Ashley Austin at amplanner@cityofannamaria.com. She will compile a list of interested homeowners and future public meetings and/or information sessions will be scheduled.
